US First Lady Melania Trump (L) is welcomed by Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi upon her arrival at the Presidential palace in the Egyptian capital Cairo on October 6, 2018, for the final stop on her 4-country tour through Africa. For Aya Hijazi’s release, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Sisi was granted a meeting at the White House. A photo of Trump and Hijazi soon after her release enabled Sisi and the Egyptian government to portray Hijazi as an American spy.

Trump has freed some US
hostages, but at a cost

In his April 7 Opinion piece, “Freeing U.S. hostages: Why was an award suddenly rescinded from Mike Pompeo?” Marc Thiessen writes that President Trump released more hostages in his current term than President Obama did. Americans know this a great achievement, but caveats exist.

Thiessen ignores the question, “At what cost?”

A Jan. 27, 2019, Los Angeles Times article explains the cost of freeing hostage Aya Hijazi. For her release, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Sisi was granted a meeting at the White House. A photo of Trump and Hijazi soon after her release enabled Sisi and the Egyptian government to portray Hijazi as an American spy.

The LA Times also notes, “Sisi was also relieved of any U.S. pressure to temper his brutal crackdown in Egypt.”

In another instance, Thiessen gets the story wrong. LiAngelo Ball (China) and the others had their charges dropped and had secured their airline tickets before the White House got involved. Yet Thiessen lists them as hostages whose freedom was secured by the Trump administration. Thiessen hasn’t done the follow-up necessary for an honest story.

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